In our new blog series, we will give a review of the most informed member-submitted comments from a specific month. In this article, we look at the ones submitted in June/July 2024.

We ask our members to submit comments that are detailed and full of useful information. With these informative comments submitted into our 68 comment topics about each school, ISC is the place to go to get the information you want, fast!

So here is the list for June/July 2024 that we thought stuck out as the most informative comments:

What does the school do to create a harmonious state of well-being and high morale amongst its staff?

“During a staff meeting, we were yelled at for stealing materials from each other. The school lacks resources but demands high performance. Rather than provide the basics — plain white copy paper, colored pencils, and whiteboard markers, we were yelled at for stealing. I was told to print one master copy and then use a code to make copies. Within 5 weeks I was told I was making too many copies. I had no books and was using the digital resources I’d brought with me. I found out that everyone was just printing to the copier and no one was using their copy codes. I was told to join my colleagues during lunch so they could get to know me. A member of the SLT came into the area to observe me interacting. Their conversations are in Albanian, the local language. I mentioned that everyone speaks English so could we chat in a shared language? They made an attempt but mostly carried on in Albanian…”

ILG School (97 total comments) in Prishtina, Kosovo.

Describe the school’s location in relation to the city center and to the teacher’s housing. How do staff get to school before and after school?

“The school is conveniently located near a highway, with ample parking available. If you don’t live in nearby condos like Casa Subang, Skyloft, or USJ One, you’ll need to commute. Public transportation is affordable, clean, and comfortable, including buses (BRT) and trains (LRT). The nearest BRT stop connects to other condos, shopping areas, and the LRT, providing access to less costly neighborhoods but may involve more than 30 minutes of commuting. Teachers use various transportation methods: walking, the LRT/BRT system, taxis, renting cars, or buying motorcycles or cars. Expats often use the LRT/BRT system, typically requiring a 20-minute walk from home to the station. The BRT stop is a short walk to the school, and taxi rides within Sunway City usually cost less than 25 RM. When planning for your commute, keep in mind that Malaysia is a beautiful, green country that feels like summer year-round. It can be quite humid, and it has two rainy seasons. You can buy an umbrella here, and there are roads designed just for motorcycles…”

Sunway International School (Kuala Lumpur) (21 total comments) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

What are some locals customs (regarding eating, drinking and going out, family, socializing, etc.) that you find interesting for expats to know about?

“You reserve a table (chope) by leaving something on it. This is, especially with locals, often a packet of tissues, but it can be a purse or shopping bag as well. It is not acceptable to sit at a table with a packet of tissues sitting on it; that means that the table has been claimed…”

EtonHouse International School (Singapore) (105 total comments) in Singapore

Average amount of money that is left to be saved. Describe the survivability for a family of four on one salary.

“I am on a single salary and able to save 1800 USD per month. The inflation skyrocketed in Turkey, especially in Istanbul but a devaluation of Turkish lira against the dollar compensated the inflation to some extent. Getting a salary in foreign currency is worth in such situations…”

Istanbul International School (21 total comments) in Istanbul, Turkey

What advice can you give on how to set things up like internet, phone, experience dealing with landlord, etc.?

“The school does a good job during the onboarding process giving multiple advice on all of these. This year they used new hire coordinators which were new teachers from last year. They even developed a new teacher handbook. Also has a new hire WhatsApp group so you can ask all the questions you might have…”

Bishop Mackenzie International School (16 total comments) in Lilongwe, Malawi

Describe the language abilities of students at this school and what is the “common language spoken in the hallways”? Is there one dominant cultural group?

“The common language spoken in the hallways is Portuguese, however, the English language proficiency is quite high.. Around 90% of the student population is from Brazil. It is a bilingual school: in English and Portuguese. There are some EAL students. Students who do not have Portuhuse language proficiency attend PAL classes…”

Pan American School of Porto Alegre (28 total comments) in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Describe their hiring policies and procedures. Share your interview experience. Any hiring restrictions? is there a particular curriculum experience required? How about single parents/number of dependents sponsored?

“School have not attended Job Fairs post Covid. For recruitment they use Search Associates. Rigorous interview process – not just to make sure that candidates are the right fit for the school but that Tashkent is the right fit for the candidate…”

Tashkent International School (78 total comments) in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Describe their hiring policies and procedures. Share your interview experience. Any hiring restrictions? is there a particular curriculum experience required? How about single parents/number of dependents sponsored?

“Really shady hiring procedures. inexperienced people hiring people to be in the school. Packages are low and they would hire basically anyone available since no one wants to sign…”

Santa Cruz Cooperative School (48 total comments) in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia.

What controversies have been happening lately? Please be objective.

“The school administrators manage expectations and respond to directives from the board, which are also focused on developing other schools in the city. The marketing campaign has successfully recruited new families; however, students are being admitted without educational leadership involved in conversations about supporting the individual needs that the families may expect. There’s a disconnect between the growth when it does not include input from the day-to-day faculty responsible for serving students and families…”

International School Dhaka (119 total comments) in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

What advice can you give on how to set things up like internet, phone, experience dealing with landlord, etc.?

“The school organises the renting of apartments, so isn’t the need for direct contact with the landlord. There are various internet and phone providers, setting up an appointment for internet to be fitted should be straightforward. Direct Tv is no longer popular, with people preferring streaming services…”

Colegio Gran Bretana (214 total comments) in Bogota, Colombia.